The pioneer of women's cricket in Pakistan, Sharmeen Khan, passed away in Lahore on Thursday. Sharmeen, who played a key role in earning international status for her country's women's cricket team, was 46 and breathed her last after battling with pneumonia.

Her sister Shaiza, who joined hands together with Sharmeen to give her country's women a cricketing identity and formed the first-ever Pakistan women's cricket team, confirmed the news of her sister's untimely death.

According to her family, Sharmeen had returned to her hometown of Lahore from England only two days ago.

The two sisters, who had studied at Leeds in England, took the inspiration of forming a national women's team after watching the 1993 Women's World Cup final at Lord's.

Despite facing strong resistance from different quarters, they persisted with their mission and eventually secured International Women's Cricket Council membership for Pakistan in September 1996. As a result of that Pakistan were eligible to play in the women's World Cup, held in India in 1997.

Incidentally, it was their father's carpet company that sponsored the first-ever Pakistan women's cricket team.

A right-handed batsman and pacer, Sharmeen had also represented her national team in two tests and 26 one-day internationals.

Her test debut came against Sri Lanka at Colombo in April 1998, and her farewell test was against Ireland at Dublin two years later.

The pioneering cricketer made her ODI debut against New Zealand at Christchurch in January 1997 while she hung her bat from international cricket after playing her final ODI against Sri Lanka at Moratuwa in January 2002.

(Cover photo courtesy of The Nation)